Tete-a-Tea continued - There's always time for Tea

Experience the goodness

You probably read my first post on tea. Well, my search for finding non-caffeinated tea alternatives led me to explore small local tea places. I was fortunate to find this little gem of a place called Jayida che that serves good tea with a great heart. 

When I walked into the cafe I saw Aleathia, one of the partners, very purposefully packing each tea bag with her own hands, getting them ready for a baby shower. And that visual sort of put all my questions in perspective…I was also able to gather more hands on knowledge about certain topics that I was keen about. 

For example, some non-caffeinated teas have berries and flowers in them and I have really wondered about the benefit of that since most of the nutrients would be lost in the drying and steeping process. I have heard multiple responses and reasons for that one but Aleathia’s was probably the most impressionable one - “It’s about the experience. Berries and flowers make the flavor of the tea "round" and treat your taste buds and that's important”. For those on a health quest trying to hunt for the "most healthy ingredients”, an often overlooked fact is that it is the experience that gives you the happiness…Tea can be anti-inflammatory and full of antioxidants and all of that, but its impact on your body will be more if you truly "experience" the goodness. Your body will then respond better to all the ingredients.

My nutritionist friend, Tamila mentions about how food is like fashion. It changes by the season, it evolves over time and it's different for different people. One must keep an open mind, try different things and never be afraid to change if something is not working for you. And that is true for tea as well. The options are infinite, so explore different flavors and blends and see what suits you.

Blends can get really interesting

Check out these blends, makes you want to try each one of them

pic courtesy @immaculate.lens

Winter Wellness: Packed with immune supporting  herbs echinecea, nettle, mint, golden seal, black seed, and catnip.

Calming: This calming tea blend has passion flowers, catnip, and lemon verbana blended.The sedative nature of catnip helps to slow down the body’s natural cycles and induce a calm, relaxed state. Perfect as an evening beverage. 

Allergy Ally: Blend composed of green tea, nettle, pineapple, red clover, barberry root, and eucalyptus open up the upper and lower respiratory tract and helps with relief

Teatox: Contains yellow dock root, spearmint, sarsaparilla root, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and licorice root, full of herbs that help the body release harmful toxins.

Energy Adjustment: Curated with green tea, shisandra berry, mint, ginkgo leaf, gotu kola, licorice root, and ginger aids in uplifting and energizing any time of day. Popular with gym goers and pretty much anybody for a boost of energy

Balance for women: This one is a marriage of mint, yerba mate, star anise, chamomile, raspberry tea leaf, and saw palmetto to help female hormones balance out during pmsing, menustrual cycle and menopause

Hakuna Matata : Has lavender, chamomile, St. Johns Wart, and ginseng. A feel good tea that can brighten up your day and give you a jumpstart when you're feeling low

Snooze Button : This soothing Chamomile blend has a hint of sage and is splashed with sweet papaya. Very popular with kids.

The list can go on.

So how do you go about fixing the most perfect cup of goodness?

·     

•     Steep to perfection

             The process of steeping (to soften the leaves and extract flavors) depends on the                 type of tea. As per this website  the following should be used as a guideline.

o    For standard black tea, freshly boiled water should be used - with temperatures above 95°C (203°F).  

o    Water should be left to cool down for at least 30 seconds when making green and white tea, with a recommended temperature of 74°C to 85°C (160°F to 203°F). 

o    Oolong tea is best steeped in 85°C (185°F) water. 

o    Herbal teas should be steeped in water with a temperature of 95°C (203°F). 

o    Regardless of the temperature, the standard explained that tea should be steeped for six minutes.

These temperatures are just guidelines. Don't go by the book, experiment. Just remember the herbal and other lighter teas like green tea, the temperature should be below boiling point else you will get a bitter flavor. For other black teas etc. just about boiling point. If your tea is made from spices like cinnamon, clove, cumin, turmeric etc. then one can boil it till it reduces to half the amount, or bring the tea to boil and then simmer for 10 minutes depending on the ingredients and the potency you are looking for                    

A sweet deal

When it comes to sweeteners, a lot of my friends use honey. Honey, the honey becomes toxic at 40 degrees C…a definite no no. Try using organic jaggery
(Jaggery is an unrefined sugar product made in Asia and Africa. It's sometimes referred to as a "non-centrifugal sugar," because it's not spun during processing to remove the nutritious molasses) available at any Indian store. Even better, find a blend of tea that has a natural sweetness to it.

• Bags to riches

When choosing tea bags, pick the premium ones that come in a silk sort of material. These are fine. Your tea bag should not only be non-toxic but should also have enough room for the tea to expand. So the tea bag should ideally be filled 1/3rd with tea leaves. Unbleached, un-chlorinated cotton muslin tea bags are equally good. Here's an example from Amazon. These tea bags are reusable and useful in case you don't want to carry loose tea around, to your work place for example.

• Let loose

The best way to make tea is to use the good old loose tea which you can then strain with a stainless steel strainer. This gives the herbs and tea leaves enough room to expand and lend flavor. It's safe and healthy.

• Always, always the small business around the corner or even across town

I had over a 100 teas to choose from
at a Russian Crepes Tea House at Springfield, MA

If you have a choice, go with a small local tea place that uses good ingredients, cares about how they make their tea and helps you find your potion. Ready made tea off the shelves, is ground in big machines, made into more of a powder so it takes less space to package and is not as fresh. You’d rather go with tea blended fresh and in small batches so you get the best flavor and benefits. 

Honestly, I think I might do more girl's lunches and dates with hubby at a tea house. Find a small quaint nook and have endless conversations, as the steam from the teapot blurs out the chaos around us and hot tea keeps reviving our connections.

Cheers!

Ayesha

Choose WellThee is about making choices that enhance your Mental, Physical, Emotional and Spiritual wellness. Follow me on facebook to keep yourself posted on exciting events in the wellness space.

10 easiest ways to step into 2018 with less exposure to chemicals and toxins

Over the last few years, I have graduated to reducing and finally eliminating the purchase and use of deodorants, toothpaste, moisturizing lotion, dishwashing liquid, soaps among other things, since I make my own. I am sure most readers and early DIY practitioners get overwhelmed and end up becoming pessimists after the overload of information about the chemicals and toxins in everyday products.

Five years ago when I had my first child and started reading and researching every ingredient of every product, I got to a point where it was downright depressing. There was either no alternative, or it was really expensive, or you had a DIY option that was time consuming. And this is the downside of being aware, your rose tinted glasses are off.....forever. However, the idea is to make peace with reality we live in and do what you can to build your body, mind and soul to continue to live a healthy and fulfilling life.

Here’s my Christmas gift to readers to switch to some healthy options. I looked at parameters like ease of adapting, amount of exposure, impact to self and family and have ranked the 10 on the ease to switch.

1. You don't need lip balm; you need to hydrate yourself
• I try to drink at least 2.5 to 3 litres of water a day and when I don't, my lips let me know. 
2. Say NO to plastic storage containers, Say YES to glass or stainless steel containers
• Plastic leaches chemicals into the food and liquids it comes in contact with. Period! Even more so under extreme heat or cold conditions, but also in normal temperature environments. And don't buy into the B.S. of BPA free. There are other toxins that manufacturers have come up with which are more toxic than BPA. Glass storage containers are suitable for freezing, baking, storage etc. There’s Costco, Bed, Bath and Beyond but so far, the most reasonably priced set I have found is at Amazon. As for water bottles, stainless steel bottles work best for me, especially since I broke 2 of the glass ones I had despite the silicon protection they had. I now have the wide mouth Hydroflask  because I got a great deal at Costco .There are countless options.
3. Switch from Nonstick pans to Stainless Steel
• There are so many brands of nonstick pans and it's amazing why more and more people are taking to them when actually better options exist. Food doesn't stick to your nonstick pan but harmful chemicals from the pan surely stick to the food. For most cooking, stainless steel can be used. When you do need a more non-stick kind of surface, use cast iron. It also increases the iron content of your food. It's a healthy option. This is my favorite for crepes(dosas).
4. For goodness sake stop spraying the air-fresheners. Switch to diffusing essential oils
• When you smell the next Febreze for instance, know it's not odors out, freshness in. It's odors out because Ethanolamine, Quarternary ammonium compound, Benzisothiazolinone, Cyclodextrin, Silicon Compounds etc.are in. It has a grade of "F" on EWG  as most of the air fresheners. Try and consult EWG  when purchasing household and personal care products. It covers an extensive range of products in the United States. Switch to diffusing Essential Oils instead of an air freshener. I use Essential Oils  and the diffuser by Young Living. 
5. Ditch Aluminium utensils and foil for cooking and baking
• Aluminium leaches into food when exposed to high temperatures. Even more so when the food is acidic. I use stainless steel for most of my baking. For things that have a tendency to stick, I use unbleached, chlorine free parchment paper like this one.
6. Fancy household cleaners can be very wisely replaced by the very versatile vinegar
• Household cleaners are loaded with chemicals. And when you think about the fact that your skin is the largest organ you can fathom the exposure it has to all sorts of chemicals and toxins. Vinegar does a good job of cleaning dirt and grime. We use a diluted vinegar solution for cleaning countertops, mopping floors etc. I have to admit for a toilet bowl cleaner I still use Lysol but I am still on the hunt for a safe yet effective replacement. Here's a website that talks about the proportions of vinegar for different types of cleaning.
7. Swap your expensive makeup-remover for Coconut oil
• Extra virgin unrefined coconut oil is one of the most versatile additions to your pantry. Apply it to your face and keep for about 15 minutes. Wipe off with a warm microfiber cloth.I use e-cloth available on Amazon. Follow by astringent and moisturizer. You need a microfiber cloth because of its unique ability to clean. We use microfiber for cleaning kitchen counter-tops, dining table, window panes etc. as well
8. Women, choose your cosmetics responsibly
• Nailpolish gets in contact with the food we eat and lands in the stomach, lipstick gets chewed. It takes 26 seconds for something that gets in contact with your skin, to be released into your bloodstream. So choose wisely. Beautycounter  is my favorite. It's a spend that's worth the money.
9. Make your own toothpaste instead of buying it at the store
• Sometimes I feel we make a big deal about toothpastes. They serve just 2 basic purposes. First, they provide some abrasiveness so as to be able to clean and second, provide an alkaline environment to keep bacteria from thriving. I make mine with coconut oil, baking soda and salt and I sometimes add sage, cinnamon or cloves. But just coconut oil, baking soda and salt works just fine. Here's a link  with recipes. I never add xylitol, stevia or essential oils because I believe if it's not necessary, well it's just not necessary. And I love essential oils but am still undecided whether it's good to use inside the mouth because there are certain good bacteria in the mouth that we should not destroy. This won't be a pretty toothpaste that smells great and comes of a tube but will have ingredients you won't fret about, when your kids swallow the toothpaste by mistake (or on purpose, like mine do).
10. Swap your deodorant with a concoction of coconut oil and baking soda
• An antiperspirant or deodorant can contain parabens - a form of preservative that can be shown to mimic the activity of oestrogen in the body's cells. Also, there have been theories and studies that have linked exposure to either parabens or aluminium chloride to an increased cancer risk.The baking soda coconut oil mix will not make head tuns when you walk into a room (like what perfumes make people do), but I personally think that's a good thing. This mix does a great job of neutralizing bad body odor. And yes even in the hot summer months. You probably don't believe me so try it for yourself. Dr. Axe's website explains the recipe quite simply. Again, essential oils are optional.
• If you want to spray j'adore and feel like Charlize Theron or want to be douse yourself in Chanel because Brad Pitt does it, spray it on your clothes and not directly on your skin

Cheers to a Happy and Healthy 2018! Post your comments! I'd love to hear about which tips were most helpful and were able to adopt into your busy life.